Peck, David Jones
1826-1855 · Contribution: 1847
Physician
First African-American to graduate from a U.S. medical school
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Quick facts
- Born
- 1826, Carlisle, Pennsylvania
- Active since
- 1847
- Category
- Science & Medicine
- Best known for
- First African American to graduate from a U.S. medical school
Impact on the world
Peck broke the color barrier of American medical education, proving a Black man could earn a U.S. medical degree at a time the profession was almost entirely closed to Black students.
An alternative history
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Sources
- Primary recordFind
Rush University Medical Center Archives
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Related visionaries
Smith, James McCune
1813-1865
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Durham, James
1762-c.1802
One of the earliest known African American physicians in the U.S. -- largely self-taught, without a formal degree -- who ran a respected New Orleans practice and corresponded with Dr. Benjamin Rush
Mossell, Nathan Francis
1856-1946
Founded the Frederick Douglass Memorial Hospital, one of the first Black-owned hospitals in Philadelphia
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Pioneering medical practice serving freed slaves after the Civil War